App idea: tell time through vibration - Wear OS Software and Hacking General

Hello,
I have recently bought a watch with Wear OS 2. I quite like it, but I am missing one nice feature from competition watches. I am blind. Apple watch and some other specialised devices can tell you time by certain vibration patterns. e.g. 5:30 am - 5 short vibrations, then pause, then 3 short vibrations... etc. I am thinking about creating something with Tasker, but this would require connection to the phone all the time.
Would someone take this as an interesting project? Or maybe would someone give me a helping hand in developing this? I am a programmer but never programmed for Android unfortunately.

what would be your preferred way of activating the vibration?
i'm thinking about an empty watchface which could, whenever it's activated either by gesture or button, start the time pattern.
also please let me know how exactly such a vibration pattern would best look like. (first hours then minutes, ok. what about 11:34 ? also seconds are not needed i guess?)
I might do a quick app
I really like this idea because the watchface would be sooo battery friendly
btw: any idea for a good name? I think I would go for "time feel watchface" if no one's got a better idea
if everything goes right, I will have a first test version by tomorrow
update: basic watchface running. gonna implement vibration pattern tomorrow.
need info:
-i assume it's no problem that the watchface is always black, this is to save as much battery as possible
-any symbol maybe for blindness i could use for the icon / watchface preview?
-should the vibration pattern start again if you touch the screen?
----I find this problematic because screen usually is only on for a few seconds, maybe i have to let it stay on as long as the pattern is running and it would go to standby immediatly after that... so i'm not quite sure how to handle this
-is a 24 hour mode needed or should it even be default?

Hi, thanks for your response. Yes this is aimed at blind people specifically, I am blind my self. Yes blind people use smart watches, mostly from Apple, but there are also some users of Android Wear OS.
wow I read your reply just now and it seems cool. I have a few points:
A watch face is an interesting idea, but for example I would prefer it to be just an app which even does not launch a screen, does the vibration and exits. I use information I have on my watch face, I use screenreader to read info about upcoming events, battery etc. You may ask why do I need this vibration way of telling time when I can read it from the watch face? Well it is more discrete and does not bother surroundings. I could assign a specific gesture in the screenreader which would launch the app and do vibrations.
Honestly, I am probably the only Wear OS user in Czech Republic and I have to get connected with other blind people to get their opinions.
I think 12 hour format should be OK so far.

so basically you just need an app that vibrates the time when launched?
for example 5:33 x x x x x pause x x x pause x x x?
then i need to rethink that. but that should be even easier

Yes, for me this would be enough. Ideally if the app would do it without displaying any window so that the screenreader does not read anything. Is that possible? I am sorry I did not clarify this at the begining.
As to how to do vibrations:
I imagine this schema:
1 - one short vibration
2 - two short vibrations
3 - three short vibrations,
4 - four short vibrations,
5 - one long vibration
6 - one long vibration, short pause, one short vibration
...
9 - one long viberation, short pause, four short vibrations
0 - long vibration, short pause, long vibration
e.g.
10:56 - short vibration, long pause, long vibration, short pause, long vibration, long pause, long vibration, long pause, long vibration, short pause, short vibration

here's a first prototype.
do you know how to install apk to your watch? you need to enable ADB and WiFi Debugging to install wireless over ADB
let me know what you think. is it too fast?
i know it's not perfect, for example you need to exit the app to relaunch the pattern. i can fix that - can i let the app run the pattern and immediately exit? so you wouldn't need to exit manually everytime

Hello, you are amazing! So fast! Thank you very much. I tried the app.I have few questions:
1. Vibrations are quite fast. Could you make it a bit slower? Let's say that the long pause among numbers could be 1 second?
2. Could you make it so that the app does not open any window? That after launching the icon everything happens in the background?
3. Will this work also on phones or only on watch?
Thank you so much. If you don't mind, I would like to spread the word about this among other Wear OS users.

1. sure. i actually use two different long pause durations: one between the digits and one between hours/minutes
---i need to do this because leading zeros are ignored. i could also do leading zeros so you always have 4 digits and pause can be constant, but imho that's not as efficient
2. In this new version the window exits after launch, I hope that's fine. also fixes not working on second launch and makes the app not stay in RAM.
3. This version is only for Wear OS, but I could copy it to an android app.
Of course you can spread this app however you like. when it's done I can attempt to publish it to the play store.
please check this new version. is it still too fast?
also 12 a.m. seems to be treated as "0". should i change this?

new version with fixed 12 a.m.
if you are fine with this state i'm going to finish it and publish it to play store

Wow thanks, this look very well. I still have a problem with the app creating a window. The problem is that when the window is created and closed again, the screenreader reacts to that - in this case after closing the app window it reads info about previously opened window or a watch face. That is a bit problematic as my idea was to not make any sound at all, so that one can check for the time discretely.
Would it be possible to not display any window at all? Maybe running as a service which would be waiting for the launcher icon to be pressed? I am not good at Android internals so maybe it is a stupid idea.

krecoun said:
Wow thanks, this look very well. I still have a problem with the app creating a window. The problem is that when the window is created and closed again, the screenreader reacts to that - in this case after closing the app window it reads info about previously opened window or a watch face. That is a bit problematic as my idea was to not make any sound at all, so that one can check for the time discretely.
Would it be possible to not display any window at all? Maybe running as a service which would be waiting for the launcher icon to be pressed? I am not good at Android internals so maybe it is a stupid idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
now I understand the problem. I need to look into this later. but I guess that's doable.
update: I tried to replicate your problem. I enabled talkback and started the app. only thing I can hear is a click when launching the app. is that what you are talking about? If so, I don't think that can be prevented as it's caused by the launch of the app.
-sorry, I didn't read correctly. so the problem is that it starts reading the previous app. that's a problem. I didn't find an easy way to fix this - as far as I read you cannot launch an app without starting an activity. at least not with an app. maybe i could make the watch sleep after launching? or you can find a solution with tasker or something similar

Hypothetic idea:
Let's say that the app would be running as a service after start. I don't know if this is possible in Wear OS.
1. After clicking the launcher icon, check if the service is already running.
2. If not, launch it. You can display even a window and close it, well while launching the service we probably won't avoid that but that's acceptable.
3. If yes, don't show anything but send some intend / activity / however it is called in Android to the running service which will do the vibration.
Is it doable?

the thing is afaik an app launch always needs to launch an activity.
if i'm wrong i hope someone corrects me

How about this?
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2704084/how-to-launch-an-activity-without-a-ui

krecoun said:
How about this?
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/2704084/how-to-launch-an-activity-without-a-ui
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
it says you can have an app that's a service only, which starts on boot an can receive intents. but how do you call it? you need to activate something. you could maybe do it as a compilation, but as I see it it's not possible by launching an app.
I see two easy solutions:
-let the app run in an empty window
or
-let the device go to standby after vibration
update: I looked into this a bit more. I guess my solutions would not work. an app can't send the device to sleep and if I show an activity the screenreader always reads the app name...
so I can't help you any further. maybe someone else can

Hi, sorry for looong delay. I must say that I am using your app quite successfully. Sometimes it talks but mostly it does not and vibrations work as expected. Great work. Maybe you could release this app into Playstore, some other blind people could benefit from that or make more suggestions.

krecoun said:
Hi, sorry for looong delay. I must say that I am using your app quite successfully. Sometimes it talks but mostly it does not and vibrations work as expected. Great work. Maybe you could release this app into Playstore, some other blind people could benefit from that or make more suggestions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for your feedback, i'm glad you like it.
I find myself running it from time to time, just to see if I can feel the time
I'm gonna try to publish it when I find time. I'm currently starting work at a different project.

Just came across this thread. Very interesting project!
I, myself, am not blind, but I like the direction this is going! I am going to try it out!
Have you published this to the Play store as of yet? This could be good! ??

Yeh, this is a unique app concept for many!

sorry, for not responding in almost a year.
best would be to bake this function into the os, or make it activate by gesture... wouldn't this be awesome? telling time without ears and eyes, just by a movement...
I just remembered this app and thought i might finish it and add it to play store.
HOPEfully this weekend

Related

Is there one decent timer for Android?

This may be an area where the dumbphones win, but I've only been able to find one app that is just a timer--open the app, you've got a timer--and it's way too cumbersome.
When the app opens, I need to see:
A number pad.
A Next button (for moving from hh/mm/ss).
A Start button.
ETA: Also, number pad input needs to overwrite the current field, not insert.
These features have been available on every dumbphone for over a decade. Can't they be done in Android?
This isn't exactly what you are looking for, but I use it.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.hybrid.stopwatch
It has a stopwatch, too, but remembers which mode you chose and launches in that mode.
Yeah, I tried that one and it has all the same issues as Kitchen Timer, though it's nicer to look at. Who decided an Android timer would use this cumbersome +/- interface? It's made worse by the fact that once you get a cursor in a field, it inserts rather than overwrites, and won't jump fields.
Ideally, the only actions necessary to set a timer should be open-0-0-7-3-5-start, no navigation, no clicking up and down as if we had a device with two buttons (i.e. a watch).
Yeah, I looked around for a timer too. This was the easiest to use that I found. I rarely have to change the time on it so for me I launch it and hit go. But if I was constantly changing the value, it would be annoying. Makes you want to go out and write your own!
I'm poking around in App Inventor to see what I can manage--I would be lost writing code from the ground up. I think I should at least be able to come up with something with multiple one-button presets on the starting page, and they can probably be user-programmable, but I don't think App Inventor has the commands to give focus to a numerical text-box (thereby highlighting the contents for replacement and launching the number pad) on app initialization.
If you want, take the time to send me some EXACT specifications and I'll see if I have time to whip something up; we're not talking 10 year global weather modeling here! LOL
TIA,
Roots
Rootstonian said:
If you want, take the time to send me some EXACT specifications and I'll see if I have time to whip something up; we're not talking 10 year global weather modeling here! LOL
TIA,
Roots
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm actually making progress in App Inventor, but if it comes to naught, I'll PM you.
Well, it's not finished and it's not pretty, but it's a timer
So far, I can't get the box to grab focus when the app opens, but it's still quicker for entering a new value than the others on the market. The empty red bar will bring up the number pad. Hit hours, mins, or secs to start the timer with the relevant units. Start/Pause work, and if you enter, for instance, "90 + Mins" it will convert it to 1 hour 30 mins. More than two digits in the Hours box will break the UI, but it will count them down
The preset buttons and persistent notification box don't do anything yet, and it doesn't remember the last value entered if you close the app yet, but the core functionality is there.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/7299403/TimerSAUR.apk
ETA: enabled persistent notifications and shake-to-stop.
ETA2: remembers last value entered and whether Persist was checked, made some visual tweaks and added an icon.
ETA3: re-skinned the whole thing and hid the preset buttons for now. I can add features, but I'd call it a complete app, and more functional than anything on the market, for my purposes.
ETA4: I, um, even fixed those script errors that caused FCs if you tried to start a timer with all fields empty. Details.
D'oh! As far as I can tell, the App Inventor "clock" function pauses if the device is sleeping--not exactly practical for a timer :/
Maybe I'll have another run at it tomorrow.
Maybe you can save the time that it paused, then calculate how much time has passed when it wakes up and start from there. That won't help much if your time expires while it is sleeping, though. Will App Inventor let you prevent sleeping?
Talking to App Inventor community members, I think the clock provided is just not workable for something like this. Maybe if I'm willing to build a windmill to turn a doorknob, I could figure something out, but I'd probably be better advised to start learning real code if I want to pursue the matter.
Better yet, I could take Rootstonian up on his/her offer
Yeah, it shouldn't be too difficult to build. And since you already have some of the GUI worked out, you can just pass that on.
I've built one Android app but it was a while ago so I'm very rusty. But it sounds like it can be done pretty quickly.
Jason

Smart Action app for other phones?

Didn't want to post this in the dev section but this app seems extremely useful and I was curious if there was any way of extracting it for use on other android devices?
That would be very darn useful for everyone.
I'm using tasker . . . you can do alot of creative stuff with it, but it is kinda complicated and costs ~$6
mel493 said:
I'm using tasker . . . you can do alot of creative stuff with it, but it is kinda complicated and costs ~$6
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have tasker as well but in general I dont find it super user friendly. From the looks of it Smart Action could replace tasker as well as juice defender which I also use.
I've already made one for home, work and when I go to bed. It seems pretty user friendly to me. Excellent app.
Heh, even if someone extracts it, it needs Blur libraries and frameworks, too.
kholk said:
Heh, even if someone extracts it, it needs Blur libraries and frameworks, too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've seen harder things get ported on xda just needs willing developers
I haven't really had a look at this Smart Action App yet as I still haven't received my microsim. I was wondering how sophisticated it is?
Is it possible to have it read sms when connected to bluetooth, for example? I attempted this with Tasker on my Defy with no success - I don't think Tasker liked MIUI very much
stunno said:
I haven't really had a look at this Smart Action App yet as I still haven't received my microsim. I was wondering how sophisticated it is?
Is it possible to have it read sms when connected to bluetooth, for example? I attempted this with Tasker on my Defy with no success - I don't think Tasker liked MIUI very much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tasker does many things but in terms of doing things you need to know the proper terms for the various variables etc for what you want to do which isnt too simple
Here are some premade ones you can download or make but none for what you wanted
http://tasker.wikidot.com/profile-index
As an example of how complicated it can get with tasker is the following. How to make a battery full notification.As you can see the app lets you do allot but is not super user friendly. Smart Action may not be able to do all that tasker is able to but may be able to do most and may be more user friendly
click New and select Event
select event category Power and event Battery Full
click Done
click + in the bottom left to add an action
select category Alert and action Notify (Sound)
type Battery Full! in the Title field
click Done
To avoid getting a repeat notification within 30 minutes, we add a cooldown:
Click on the profile and select Profile Properties
Slide the Cooldown Time slider to the far right
Click Done
Alternative solution to avoid repeat notifications (added by b00ky)
Set a variable such as "%BFN" to 0 anytime you plug in your phone
Edit the "Notify Sound" task to only run "If %BFN < 0"
Add a new task "Tasker » Variable Set » %BFN to 1"
This has worked for me and makes sure you only get notified ONCE while it is plugged in as opposed to after 30 minutes of cooldown.
I'm new to this so I apologize if this is not a good way to do this, but it works for me.
An alternative to the alternative to avoid repeat notifications. If you tend to leave plugged in for long durations, 30 minute cool down may not do it for you. The below gives you a one time notification that your battery is full, and wont repeat until you unplug/replug back in. phonedude
Profile - Battery 100%
Event - Battery Full
Enter task -
1. Play your sound
2. Set Profile Status {Battery 100%} to Off
Exit task-
n.a.
Profile - Plugged In
State - Power (Source = Any)
Enter task -
1. Profile Status {Battery 100%} to On
Exit task-
1. Profile Status {Battery 100%} to Off
Thanks for that fidorulz! Much appreciated. I notice on that site that the guy tried to get the read SMS to work and failed, tried again and got it working but doesn't know how!
http://tasker.wikidot.com/readsmswhileincardock
I found a walk through on here that would not work either and I assumed it was because of MIUI, as Tasker didn't register any SMS being received. It seems that the %SMSRF and %SMSRB variables only get initialised when an SMS is received.
I will patiently wait for tmobile and the royal mail to get their fingers out and deliver my microsim and I will give it another go
I use "Setting Profiles" pretty simple and powerful, a lot easier to use than tasker (although not quite as powerful in the nitty-gritty) but definitely hits the 80/20 rule. It costs, but I believe there is a free version to try out the functionality and see how you like it.

Amazon's Alexa on Android Wear

Introduction
I've been working on a project to incorporate Amazon's Alexa into an Android application as a standalone. It started as an Android TV project, and then got ported over to Android mobile. This weekend I finally got the project to work on Android Wear, so now you can speak to (and listen, if you have speakers or connected Bluetooth speakers) Alexa from your wrist. Because I only have access to an LG G Watch, for the moment, I would love to hear any feedback you all have on issues you find or how you think the project can be made better. The more Wear hardware that it's tested with, the better.
Download
You can get the app here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.willblaschko.android.alexalistens or download the APK from the Android TV link above.
More Details
If you want to read a little more about the code behind the implementation, I've done a write up for the TV/phone app here and will be putting together a piece on the Wear app.
Thanks!
Do I need to have an Alexa unit in order for this to work?
Great app, thanks. Ran into a persistent crash issue quickly though. If I uncheck the "Android Wear Preferences"->"Play on mobile" option and try anything from my Huawei watch it shows a message on the phone saying that Alexa Listens has crashed and it does not work. If I leave the option checked it works fine especially where I can hear the voice response on my phone, it was pointless to hear the response from the mobile also which is why I wanted to disable it.
is there a link for a version of this that will install on KitKat? this app looks exciting and I tried downloading earlier apk versions of this app but just get the "error parsing package" pop-up ... really want to try it out but upgrading from android 4.4 on my note 3 probably isn't gonna happen ... this looks awesome thanks
still really excited to try this. i have a Huawei Watch and my phone is Samsung galaxy note 3 on android 4.4 ... my note 3 hasn't exploded yet so I can't risk an upgrade to a newer android version but still really want to try your app!
Wow, this is great. Good work!
oh man this looks like something I really really want ... does anyone know how to alter the apk so I can install this on a Samsung note 3 with android 4.4.2? (modifying build.prop didn't work)
Enjoying the possibilities with this app. I have it on a oneplus 3 with a Huawei Watch. When it works it is great, but quite often from the watch it will not respond. I can then go into settings on the phone app and deactivate the always on listener then reactivate it. After that it works from my watch again for a while... until it doesn't and I have to do the deactivate/reactivate all over again. Any ideas?
works perfect for me, Voice response and all. But i was wondering could u add the option for the mic to auto listen on launch? as oppose to having to click the mic when u want to talk to it, would make it easier to use without all those screen taps
---------- Post added at 08:08 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:01 AM ----------
also this app literaly breathes NEW LIFE into my huawei watch, this feature alone single handly makes my android watch a must have, " Turn off lights " on the wrist and " request a uber" a is exactly what the google claimed the android watch would be bale to do, but until this app was unable to do
Works well, thanks for this. I did remove it but for some reason it still shows up on the watch even though it is not on the phone. Any idea why?
Hi will,
thanks for the great app, I really love it! I just picked up an Asus Zenwatch 3 and this is a Must-Have
As I'm using it quite often now, I tought I should share my experiences.
The ZW3 comes with two mappable buttons, I put Alexa Listens on one of those, that's really convenient. I'd love if Alexa would listen automatically after starting the App, I think this would be a nicer UX.
Alexa Speech Output has some minor flaws. I did some German Skills, which I used for testing. One replies with SSML - audio and speech afterwards (e.g. on Echo Dot), Alexa Listens only plays the audio (but this could be a flaw in my Skill too).
When Alexa isn't understanding my input, there's no real feedback, it just remains silent (or maybe I'm missing something). Echo Dot usually replies with "I didn't understand that" or similar, that's nicer.
@will.blaschko You aren't open sourcing this, are you? Personally, I'm a huge fan of TuneIn on all devices - I'd love to write the player support for the app, just to get it
Thanks again for the great app!
Working on a new version now, so hopefully that'll be available soon --including support for UK/DE.
If you want to look at the source that powers most of the app: https://github.com/willblaschko/AlexaAndroid
New version is in the Play Store, I can post here as well if you want .
will.blaschko said:
New version is in the Play Store, I can post here as well if you want .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Updating right now, will give feedback asap - thanks a lot
Hello!
(Please Forgive my not so good English!),
I use this awesome Skill/App now for a couple of weeks, and it is exactly what I'm looking for, but I have a little Problem!? - I have a Sony-Smartwatch-3, and after Using the App on it, the App starts/reopens itself again and again!? - I must everytime make a Reboot on the Smartwatch to solve this!
Please take a look at it!
Thanks!
RoseL.
Listener Sensitivity!
Hello!
The App is Awesome, but far to Sensitive!? I have Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-S (LTE) with Stock-Android-6.0.1 rooted, and the App reacts all few Seconds!? When I set "Not Sensitive" in the Sensitivity-Options, I can Yell, but the App don't reacts at all, and when I set "Normal", it reacts all the time all few Seconds!? Can You Please add a Possibility to set the voice-sensitivity in percent!? Or a Option between "Not Sensitive" and "Normal"!? I really want to use this App every Day, and I will Donate to, but how it is now, a cannot use it, because it reacts not at all, or every few seconds!?
Thanks!
Problem installing app
Hi I tried to install this app on my Zenwatch 3, however, if I go to the app-store, it says the app is not compatible. What am I doing wrong?

Anyone helping building a new companion app to send data to the Stratos/Pace Watch?

Hi there,
i'm trying to build a companion app similar to watchdroid with wich i can send data to the watch and display them on a widget/springboard.
In my case i wan't to have my blood glucose level on my watch as i was used to with my android wear watch.
I have a simply app made with taske wich can read out a json from my nightscout site. This sadly work only via wifi.
Main problem is the bluetooth comunication. i've tried so many simply bluetooth apps and librarys via sideload. I can't even tell how many. Non of them worked out. Only some worked in watch to phone direction but not the other - desired - way. In almost every case, my phone could'nt even find the watch.
But since watch droid got it working, i know there is a way.
There is another way to get data to the watch: the notification system. Since i also could'nt get the notification listener to work on the watch, it is also not a starting point for me.
Last chance i see is automizing watchdroid and sending a file at a regulary scedule and reading this from the widget.
For the moment i just use Notify and fitness cause the Phone notification with my glucose level is persistent and the huami app ignores persistent notifications.
But get a new notification with my glucose level every 5 Minutes. On the phone the notification gets just updated, on the watch i get a new one. Over the day the notification stack gets fuller and fuller...
I'm not talking about geting this into a watchface, thats the next step after the next hundreds of steps.
Any help and tipps are welcome.
When a notification is dismissed on the phone, it should dismiss on the watch.
If you have the source to this app, you could make it dismiss it's notification and send a new one.
Klaus3d said:
Hi there,
i'm trying to build a companion app similar to watchdroid with wich i can send data to the watch and display them on a widget/springboard.
In my case i wan't to have my blood glucose level on my watch as i was used to with my android wear watch.
I have a simply app made with taske wich can read out a json from my nightscout site. This sadly work only via wifi.
Main problem is the bluetooth comunication. i've tried so many simply bluetooth apps and librarys via sideload. I can't even tell how many. Non of them worked out. Only some worked in watch to phone direction but not the other - desired - way. In almost every case, my phone could'nt even find the watch.
But since watch droid got it working, i know there is a way.
There is another way to get data to the watch: the notification system. Since i also could'nt get the notification listener to work on the watch, it is also not a starting point for me.
Last chance i see is automizing watchdroid and sending a file at a regulary scedule and reading this from the widget.
For the moment i just use Notify and fitness cause the Phone notification with my glucose level is persistent and the huami app ignores persistent notifications.
But get a new notification with my glucose level every 5 Minutes. On the phone the notification gets just updated, on the watch i get a new one. Over the day the notification stack gets fuller and fuller...
I'm not talking about geting this into a watchface, thats the next step after the next hundreds of steps.
Any help and tipps are welcome.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello,
what application do you use to get a notification every 5 minutes ??? you use a FreeStyle Free blood glucose sensor ??? I will be very happy to read you to know if you succeeded !!!
astrarico said:
Hello,
what application do you use to get a notification every 5 minutes ??? you use a FreeStyle Free blood glucose sensor ??? I will be very happy to read you to know if you succeeded !!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it's freestyle libre with ambrosia blucon nightrider for nfc readout and transmission every 5 min. The app i use is xdrip+.
The notification is persistent to keep the data collector service running, to show the value on the notificatiin icon even on the aod of samsungs.
Klaus3d said:
Yes, it's freestyle libre with ambrosia blucon nightrider for nfc readout and transmission every 5 min. The app i use is xdrip+.
The notification is persistent to keep the data collector service running, to show the value on the notificatiin icon even on the aod of samsungs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ah yes anyway, the price of "ambrosia blucon nightrider" as we say at home "it stings the eyes". before you give me the answer I was wondering how you did to get back the FreeStyle scan, so I understand. on the other hand to use the nightscout, it is a little the course of the fighter ... a lot of account to create. damage that the app glimp or other does not regroup suddenly!
It's currently my intention to build a framework for both phone and watch to allow apps to get data from the internet at some point in the next few months. I'm stuck with work to do at the moment so don't have any time to put towards projects (especially not big ones like that) but in the future - probably
I'd ideally also like to get Android Wear (not Wear OS, it's an old version) working too, to allow at least some companion apps to function (Sleep as Android, Keep etc.). I've got the framework working fine (which does improve app compatibility, but no communication still severely limits what they can do), but the two way Bluetooth connection throws an error that I cannot find any documentation about, so it's on hold for now until I have sufficient time to investigate properly
This would be awesome to have a framework like this. In my case i would'nt even need real internet access, due to the web service is localy provided by the xdrip app. But this would open so many things and possible options to code. Let me know if i could help. I'm also short in time but willing to help.
Getting Android wear working on the pace/stratos would also be great. I tried out sideloading the micro apk for wear of xdrip+ and it worked out better than expected. No crashes from the app and even the integrated watchfaces were selectable. Of course there were no data shown and no low power watchface.
Klaus3d said:
Getting Android wear working on the pace/stratos would also be great. I tried out sideloading the micro apk for wear of xdrip+ and it worked out better than expected. No crashes from the app and even the integrated watchfaces were selectable. Of course there were no data shown and no low power watchface.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It might actually be possible to build a newer version of Android, source code exists for the CPU and MIPS sources exist all the way up to Oreo, but again that would take time I don't have (and space for that matter)
Just wanted to let you know, that thanks to edotassi i have a working widget with my blood glucose values on my Stratos.
https://github.com/edotassi/AmazMod
https://github.com/edotassi/AmazModService
Now i'm fine tuning the widget and maybe also the nightscout parts of amazmod. But i'm still learning.
Klaus3d said:
Just wanted to let you know, that thanks to edotassi i have a working widget with my blood glucose values on my Stratos.
Now i'm fine tuning the widget and maybe also the nightscout parts of amazmod. But i'm still learning.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, great news. Will this work on Amazfit BIP ?
Since the Bip does not rely on the AmazFit Watch app, i'd say no.
Can you show on the photo the indications of the xdrip on the watch? how it works.
Hi, i'm now trying to integrate quinnys library into xDrip, to make thinks easy and to allow 2 way communication.
Since xDrip is a really big and complex project + i'm a noop i'm having trouble with providing a switch in the menus and finding the right place to start the service from. Maybe someone can help me out again.
I am also really interest of amazfit bit. I saw now, xdrip have one section called "amazfit synk service" look like can connect with this kind of phones. Are there news to see the value on the display?
Tapiocapioca said:
I am also really interest of amazfit bit. I saw now, xdrip have one section called "amazfit synk service" look like can connect with this kind of phones. Are there news to see the value on the display?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
None of this will work with the Bip, it's too limited
Is there any way to implement the clockscreen or widget from Glimp instead of XDrip on the Stratosphere. I'm getting better use from Glimp and MiaoMiao.
Klaus3d said:
Just wanted to let you know, that thanks to edotassi i have a working widget with my blood glucose values on my Stratos.
https://github.com/edotassi/AmazMod
https://github.com/edotassi/AmazModService
Now i'm fine tuning the widget and maybe also the nightscout parts of amazmod. But i'm still learning.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should ask this the devs of glimp.

[APP] Standalone navigation app for Wear OS!

I made a standalone navigation app for Wear OS! Here's the link to the app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.co.onibaku.standalonewearmap
Here's the full description on the app so you can get a glance at the features:
Users can type in a location, or long press on the map to input a destination. They can choose to travel via walking, cycling or car.
The app will navigate the user from their current location to the destination using turn-by-turn navigation. Each step is highlighted on the path, with text to show you what action to take, and how long until you reach that step. The map rotates along with the device, so will follow the forward-facing direction of the watch.
The app only needs an internet connection for the initial retrieval of the directions. After that, it solely relies on GPS until the user arrives at the destination.
This (obviously) only works on watches that have GPS.
If you have any suggestions at all, I'd love to know them.
The next feature I plan to implement is importing a GPX file in from Google Drive, so you can navigate a more unorthodox/scenic route, which would suits cyclists. I initially developed this for when I go cycling, as we don't usually want to take the fastest route somewhere.
Let me know if there any burning features that are needed in this, and I'll do my best to deliver. This is a small side-project, so I don't have too much time to work on it, but I find it quite useful personally, and I hope others will, too.
Someone suggested I release a demo version so people can try it and see if they wish to buy it. I have released one here
It only has the dropped pin functionality, and only allows walking as a navigation mode. The zoom is also locked.
Gentatsu said:
I made a standalone navigation app for Wear OS! Here's the link to the app: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.co.onibaku.standalonewearmap
Here's the full description on the app so you can get a glance at the features:
Users can type in a location, or long press on the map to input a destination. They can choose to travel via walking, cycling or car.
The app will navigate the user from their current location to the destination using turn-by-turn navigation. Each step is highlighted on the path, with text to show you what action to take, and how long until you reach that step. The map rotates along with the device, so will follow the forward-facing direction of the watch.
The app only needs an internet connection for the initial retrieval of the directions. After that, it solely relies on GPS until the user arrives at the destination.
This (obviously) only works on watches that have GPS.
If you have any suggestions at all, I'd love to know them.
The next feature I plan to implement is importing a GPX file in from Google Drive, so you can navigate a more unorthodox/scenic route, which would suits cyclists. I initially developed this for when I go cycling, as we don't usually want to take the fastest route somewhere.
Let me know if there any burning features that are needed in this, and I'll do my best to deliver. This is a small side-project, so I don't have too much time to work on it, but I find it quite useful personally, and I hope others will, too.
Someone suggested I release a demo version so people can try it and see if they wish to buy it. I have released one here
It only has the dropped pin functionality, and only allows walking as a navigation mode. The zoom is also locked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is looking really good. I want true standalone navigation on my Huawei Watch 2 4G. It has a sim so loads the route standalone and seems to be able to do everything expected...i'm trying the demo version now.
One question though...unless i'm missing something..how do you exit the app? I'm currently having to force close it.
(And as a side note have you checked out the Wear OS app Ghostracer? You can import a gpx file and follow your progress on a map on the watch. Maps are downloadable to the watch, although ive never tried that. My watch has a sim so updates the map as im riding using the watches data. Heavy on the battery though.)
ruggs1234 said:
This is looking really good. I want true standalone navigation on my Huawei Watch 2 4G. It has a sim so loads the route standalone and seems to be able to do everything expected...i'm trying the demo version now.
One question though...unless i'm missing something..how do you exit the app? I'm currently having to force close it.
(And as a side note have you checked out the Wear OS app Ghostracer? You can import a gpx file and follow your progress on a map on the watch. Maps are downloadable to the watch, although ive never tried that. My watch has a sim so updates the map as im riding using the watches data. Heavy on the battery though.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had not realised that the app does not cease to use GPS whilst it is in sleep mode, so I have added a button to exit the app properly when you drag down. I've just released it now.
I have had a look at it, but it doesn't seem to work unless you have an android phone. I am currently looking into offline maps and importing GPX files. Do you know if it does that via the android app, and how it imports it? I was looking to use Google drive, as that seems to be the only viable storage solution supported on Wear atm.
Gentatsu said:
I had not realised that the app does not cease to use GPS whilst it is in sleep mode, so I have added a button to exit the app properly when you drag down. I've just released it now.
I have had a look at it, but it doesn't seem to work unless you have an android phone. I am currently looking into offline maps and importing GPX files. Do you know if it does that via the android app, and how it imports it? I was looking to use Google drive, as that seems to be the only viable storage solution supported on Wear atm.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thankyou for the exit button, works great. Having tested the demo app i'm happy, and I will purchase. One further comment, the battery drain is heavy, as expected. Any chance of an ambient mode while the map is running to save battery? I may be pushing my luck, but I can only ask!
Ghostracer does indeed need a companion Android app on the phone. The gpx file is loaded into the app on the phone (using a file manager) then passed to the Ghostracer app on the watch. Maps are treated the same, but I just use the data from my sim in the watch to load maps as I ride when needed. You can follow a gpx route standalone on the watch in a similar way to following the route on your app. I am not connected to Ghostracer in any way, I just think its a wonderful app for cyclists and runners (within the watches battery limitations). And the free version allows you to test all its features. It might not be right for you, but it was worth a mention based on what you said earlier. (And the map screen has an ambient mode.... )
ruggs1234 said:
Thankyou for the exit button, works great. Having tested the demo app i'm happy, and I will purchase. One further comment, the battery drain is heavy, as expected. Any chance of an ambient mode while the map is running to save battery? I may be pushing my luck, but I can only ask!
Ghostracer does indeed need a companion Android app on the phone. The gpx file is loaded into the app on the phone (using a file manager) then passed to the Ghostracer app on the watch. Maps are treated the same, but I just use the data from my sim in the watch to load maps as I ride when needed. You can follow a gpx route standalone on the watch in a similar way to following the route on your app. I am not connected to Ghostracer in any way, I just think its a wonderful app for cyclists and runners (within the watches battery limitations). And the free version allows you to test all its features. It might not be right for you, but it was worth a mention based on what you said earlier. (And the map screen has an ambient mode.... )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great . I did play around with the ambient mode, but it was just the same as the standard google maps ambient mode. It takes away the turn-by-turn, location, and path. If I could persist these, and set the GPS to update every 30 secs - 1 minute, I'd probably keep it, but I'm not sure how. I'd like to stick in options to set the GPS update frequency, or have the screen turn back on only for upcoming turns.
That's really cool! That's essentially what I would have liked on my watch but standalone. I really don't like the idea that you HAVE to use a companion app, especially when it's not available for iOS. I know they're competing watches, but I love the price point of android watches compared to Apple's, and their features shouldn't pale in comparison by way of hardware.
How does their ambient map work, if you don't mind me asking? I'd like to look into it. What does their paid version allow you to do? I only had a paid version before someone mentioned to put the free one on, just to give people a flavour of it. I tried to emphasise the main bit, which was the turn-by-turn navigation. The search and other transportation modes were secondary.
Cheers for the feedback and suggestions, though! I really do appreciate it! Let me know if there's anything else you'd like.
Gentatsu said:
Great . I did play around with the ambient mode, but it was just the same as the standard google maps ambient mode. It takes away the turn-by-turn, location, and path. If I could persist these, and set the GPS to update every 30 secs - 1 minute, I'd probably keep it, but I'm not sure how. I'd like to stick in options to set the GPS update frequency, or have the screen turn back on only for upcoming turns.
That's really cool! That's essentially what I would have liked on my watch but standalone. I really don't like the idea that you HAVE to use a companion app, especially when it's not available for iOS. I know they're competing watches, but I love the price point of android watches compared to Apple's, and their features shouldn't pale in comparison by way of hardware.
How does their ambient map work, if you don't mind me asking? I'd like to look into it. What does their paid version allow you to do? I only had a paid version before someone mentioned to put the free one on, just to give people a flavour of it. I tried to emphasise the main bit, which was the turn-by-turn navigation. The search and other transportation modes were secondary.
Cheers for the feedback and suggestions, though! I really do appreciate it! Let me know if there's anything else you'd like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ghostracers ambient map is black background with white markings until you lift your wrist...but that might not work when using your app while driving (watch off the wrist?).
I've now purchased your app (Google made that hard work!)...all still good. One question...when I zoom the map in the map un-zooms straight back. Any way to make the zoom stick?
ruggs1234 said:
Ghostracers ambient map is black background with white markings until you lift your wrist...but that might not work when using your app while driving (watch off the wrist?).
I've now purchased your app (Google made that hard work!)...all still good. One question...when I zoom the map in the map un-zooms straight back. Any way to make the zoom stick?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do the markings include the path/trail? I've used the black background one before, and the building outlines are (kinda) white. Yeah, I do have my watch affixed to my handlebars on my bicycle.
Great - Thanks! It's much appreciated! How come it was hard work, if you don't mind me asking? Ah, yep. That was one of the first things I forgot to change! I completely forgot about it! I've made it so that if you zoom/pan, it'll stick unless you press the "my location" button again.
Huawei watch 2 built-in GPS not working anymore
ruggs1234 said:
Thankyou for the exit button, works great. Having tested the demo app i'm happy, and I will purchase. One further comment, the battery drain is heavy, as expected. Any chance of an ambient mode while the map is running to save battery? I may be pushing my luck, but I can only ask!
Ghostracer does indeed need a companion Android app on the phone. The gpx file is loaded into the app on the phone (using a file manager) then passed to the Ghostracer app on the watch. Maps are treated the same, but I just use the data from my sim in the watch to load maps as I ride when needed. You can follow a gpx route standalone on the watch in a similar way to following the route on your app. I am not connected to Ghostracer in any way, I just think its a wonderful app for cyclists and runners (within the watches battery limitations). And the free version allows you to test all its features. It might not be right for you, but it was worth a mention based on what you said earlier. (And the map screen has an ambient mode.... )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi ruggs1234, it was a long time since you wrote your experience with this app. I downloaded the demo today and I tested it. Looks like since last Google's update, the huawei watch 2 doesn't use its built-in standalone GPS. Please, would you mind to check whether you are having this problem now? The only way I got it work was by connecting the watch to a phone through Bluetooth.
Kind regards, Angel
angelrc96 said:
Hi ruggs1234, it was a long time since you wrote your experience with this app. I downloaded the demo today and I tested it. Looks like since last Google's update, the huawei watch 2 doesn't use its built-in standalone GPS. Please, would you mind to check whether you are having this problem now? The only way I got it work was by connecting the watch to a phone through Bluetooth.
Kind regards, Angel
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello Angel,
The app still works ok on my watch, I tested it yesterday.
With my phone switched OFF I use my watches inbuilt sim to start the route (the app needs data to download the initial route, it can use the connected mobile but mine was switched off). I then switch off the sim in my watch and follow the route using only the gps in the watch. The app worked as it always has.
HOWEVER, my watch isn't running the latest version of Wear OS (it's running Wear OS 2.0, Home app 2.16). I never update anything Google if i'm not forced too, their updates often break more things than they fix. Everything I use on the watch works great and i'd like it to stay that way....
Hi,
well, I gave it a test (full paid version) - TicWatch 3 Pro 4g/LTE (all up to date). It doesn't work. All tested in standalone mode (no phone involved).
- app crashes when there is no GPS fix (GPS is on, but no fix yet)
- when I set an route to navigate (pin or search) it just endlessly shows progress circle and nothing else happens (GPS on with fix, LTE on and working)
So...
BR, Doman.
I installed the Demo version on my ticwatch 3 pro gps (updated everything to current versions and no modifications (yet))
App is starting, map is not showing, just the gps location button on the left and a white/grey screen. I can pin a location on the white screen and its actually getting a location next to me and tries to route there - but without any map showing.
Any app for Gear S3 ?

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